Category: Blog

  • Speaking Chinese Class

    Speaking Chinese Class

    I’ve had a few Chinese teachers since I first arrived in China back in 2014 and just about all of them have been good for what I was looking for at the time. Some I studied with for only a few months, others I stayed with for longer. My current Chinese teacher, whom I meet…

  • The Chinese NAT test

    The Chinese NAT test

    It might come as a surprise to some but not to others, and some might even censure me for not doing this sooner, but I finally took a COVID test, also known as a nucleic acid test, or NAT for short. The result? Negative. Why did I finally go in for a test? Work told…

  • Back to work with contract #4

    Back to work with contract #4

    It might seem odd to most people to number their contracts but it’s a fact of life for a lot of expats, particularly those in the ESL field. We’re not given multi-year or endless contractual terms, we’re typically only given annual contracts. As such, every year there is a chance for the company to review…

  • Some thoughts on learning Mandarin Chinese

    Some thoughts on learning Mandarin Chinese

    While going through some old posts I came across the post I wrote almost two years ago in which I declared my intent to improve my Mandarin Chinese. That post, published on December 9th, 2018, stated that I would try to achieve the level of HSK 4 or 5 within a year and was inspired…

  • A change in food scene

    A change in food scene

    For the all hubbub over the trade war between China and the United States, I can’t help but see more foreign companies making their way into China. In particular, the food scene has changed quite a bit in the short six years that I’ve been in this country and in Beijing.  Tims (AKA Tim Hortons),…

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